Citing a Kuwaiti newspaper report, Lebanese blog Ya Libnan reports that premier designate Najib Mikati is on the verge of quitting due to his inability to form a government.
Hezbollah is reportedly creating obstacles for Mikati for insisting on including in the cabinet Faisal Karami , son of former PM Omar Karami as the representative of the Sunnis.
Hezbollah is also reportedly hiding behind MP Michel Aoun’s renewed demand for the ministry of Interior even though it was agreed earlier in March that the interior ministry will go to the centrist bloc of President Suleiman, Mikati and MP Walid Jumblatt.
President Suleiman is reportedly fully aware of Aoun’s intentions and for this reason he will not allow Aoun to control the ministry of interior under any circumstances. After all, one analyst told Ya Libnan last month : “Awarding the ministry of interior to Aoun will put the whole internal security of Lebanon under Hezbollah’s direct control. Such a situation will be extremely dangerous for Lebanon and will turn Lebanon into another Gaza or Somalia .”
Does Hezbullah have an interest in anarchy? Perhaps. It makes it much easier to take the country to war if Iran and Syria tell them to do that.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that the United States stopped sending weapons to Lebanon in January.
However, the decision was not publicized in order to ensure a smooth transition to a new Lebanese government following the collapse of former Prime Minister Sa'ad Hariri's Western-backed administration.
American deliveries of non-lethal equipment have continued, as has military training for the Lebanese Army.
In 2010, the U.S. granted at least $18 million in ordnance to Lebanon, according to the report.
Hizbullah-backed Nagib Mikati was appointed as the new prime minister-designate in January with a parliamentary majority secured, according to March 14 Alliance rivals, by the terrorists' weapons.
Change. The Obama administration actually did the right thing.
Outgoing Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced on Monday that he will form an opposition rather than joining a government led by Hezbullah.
His successor, Hezbollah-backed Sunni billionaire Najib Mikati, is now negotiating to form a cabinet and had called on Mr. Hariri and his allies to join a unity government. Mr. Hariri's move secures Hezbollah's place as the dominant political force in the next Lebanese government.
With the announcement, in an impassioned, confrontational speech to thousands of supporters, the Sunni leader, who until last month had to manage a range of interests in his own unity government, set the stage for heightened conflict. Mr. Hariri called for mass protests on March 14, and accused Hezbollah and its allies of "lies, betrayal and lack of loyalty."
He also reaffirmed his support for a United Nations-backed tribunal investigating the assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, on Feb. 14, 2005. The assassination, in a car bombing, was a pivotal event in Lebanon, and led to the end of Syria's 30-year military occupation of the country.
There's something left unsaid here: With a Hezbullah dominated government, it is highly likely that the US will cut off aid to Lebanon. The stronger the Hezbullah domination, the more likely the cutoff.
In a meeting with Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati, Hezbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah has rejected any reference to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the new government's ministerial statement (which sounds like what we would call a coalition agreement here in Israel).
[The pan-Arab daily al-Hayat said Sunday] that the premier-designate was informed of this decision during a meeting with Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah that was held away from the media spotlight about a week ago.
The meeting also tackled other issues related to the formation of the Cabinet, including the party's demand that some of its Sunni allies be represented in the government, a matter that Miqati has reservations over because he is seeking to avoid a dispute with Sunni politicians.
The sources said that Miqati is currently awaiting a reply from Hizbullah over a suggestion that the ministerial statement include a demand to achieve justice and uncover the sides behind the assassination of former Prime Minster Rafik Hariri.
"Nasrallah adamantly refused to include any phrase related to the STL, while Miqati's position stems from his adherence to the decisions reached during the 2006 national dialogue," they added.
His position also stems from the need to avoid western nations taking a negative stand towards the new government seeing as the ambassadors of these countries have repeatedly highlighted the importance of Lebanon respecting international resolutions and commitments.
Note the part that I highlighted. Doesn't it remind you of OJ Simpson's pledge to find the 'real killers'?
Berman calls on White House to stop arms shipments to Lebanon
US Representative Howard Berman (D-Cal), the ranking minority member of the House Foreign affairs committee, has called on the Obama administration to suspend all military aid to Lebanon in light of the fact that Hezbullah will likely form the next government.
I call on President Obama immediately to suspend all weapons transfers to Lebanon and to review carefully all economic assistance programs in order to ensure that they are not inadvertently strengthening Hizbullah,” Berman said.
Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas), who chairs the appropriations subcommittee overseeing foreign operations, under which Lebanon aid falls, said the recent developments were likely to hurt the relationship between the two countries.
“The political transition in Lebanon is an unfortunate step backward. It is doubtful that an Iranian-backed regime will be a partner of the United States,” she said. “I will continue to monitor the situation closely and support policies that promote democracy and peace for the Lebanese people and its neighbors.”
Though Congress had already approved funds for the Lebanese Armed Forces before the government fell and the balance of power shifted toward Hizbullah, Congress can use its influence over the country’s purse strings to push for an aid shut off, pending the administration’s decision.
One Democratic aide to a member on the foreign operations appropriations subcommittee said Congress was carefully watching the situation in Lebanon and waiting for a determination from the State Department on how to deal with future disbursements to Lebanon.
He said that there were still legislators who felt it was important for American influence to be visible in the country through economic assistance but that voices for cutting off aid were now magnified.
“There are already members of Congress who’d like to see aid cut off,” he said. “The latest developments only strengthen their hand, and the fact that we now have a GOP-controlled Congress makes a cut off in aid to Lebanon even more likely.”
Yeah, those evil Republicans don't care much for the red-green alliance, do they?
"Sunni blood is boiling", chanted some protesters in the north of the country, burning pictures of prime ministerial nominee Najib Mikati and waving blue flags of Hariri's Future Movement. The movement has said it will not serve in any government dominated by the militant Shi'ite group.
In Beirut, the main road connecting the city with the airport was closed to traffic due to the protests and some reported that guns could be heard being fired in the area. The Arabic language Al Arabiya TV network reported clashes between police and protesters in the central part of the city.
Lebanon's power-sharing political system mandates that the post of prime minister be held by a Sunni, and Hariri supporters said any figure who accepted the nomination from Hezbollah to form a new government would be considered a traitor.
Mikati urged citizens to remain calm on Tuesday and said he wanted to represent all of Lebanon.
"This is a democratic process," he told reporters. "I want to rescue my country."
Protesters in Tripoli set fire to a truck used by the television station Al Jazeera. Journalists from the channel and other reporters said they were taking refuge in a nearby building.
"If the army does not hurry up and help us, we will be in danger," Al Jazeera reporter Majed Abdel-Hadi said in a live call broadcast by the channel.
Great news: Hezbullah has enough votes to take over Lebanon
Hezbullah has lined up enough votes in the Lebanese parliament to name that country's next Prime Minister. They plan to name billionaire businessman Najib Mikati, a 'moderate' politician and former premier. Hezbullah's opponents in the March 14 movement rioted in Tripoli in response.
Several hundred Hariri supporters in the northern city of Tripoli, a predominantly Sunni area and a hotbed of fundamentalists, staged protests Monday chanting slogans against Mikati, a lawmaker from Tripoli.
The protesters waved pictures of Hariri and shouted: "Mikati you are not one of us, leave Tripoli and go away." Some banners read: "The blood of Sunnis is boiling."
The protesters briefly closed a main road in the town of Minyeh in Tripoli.
Mikati appealed for calm and, in a statement, called on Hariri supporters not to upset stability.
Hizbullah and its allies had the support of at least 57 seats and gained seven more from the bloc of Walid Jumblatt, the influential leader of the Druse sect. With Mikati's vote, Hizbullah reached 65. The voting in parliament on a new candidate for prime minister was to continue on Tuesday.
Hizbullah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said Sunday if their candidate gets the post of prime minister, the group will try to form another national unity government with Hariri's Western-backed bloc.
But Hariri said Monday he will not join a government headed by a Hizbullah-backed candidate.
On Sunday, Hizbullah's bloc chose Mikati, who served briefly as premier in 2005. He presented himself as a candidate reaching out to all sides.
"I don't distinguish between anyone. I extend my hand to everyone without exception. ... I say to Prime Minister Saad Hariri, let us all work together for the sake of Lebanon," he told reporters.
But Mikati dodged a question if he would end Lebanon's cooperation with the international court — a key Hizbullah demand — saying only that "any dispute can be solved only through dialogue."
A statement issued by Hariri's office said there is no "consensual candidate" and made clear Hariri remained the Western-backed camp's choice for prime minister.
Lawmaker Oqab Sakr said Mikati's candidacy was "a clear challenge to the will of the parliamentary and popular majority."
A Harvard graduate, Mikati is seen as a relatively neutral figure who enjoys good relations with Syrian President Bashar Assad and with the pro-Western Hariri, who himself is seeking to keep the post.
Mikati, whose wealth is estimated at $2.5 billion is on the Forbes list of world billionaires. In the 1980s, during Lebanon's civil war, he founded telecom company Investcom with his elder brother, Taha. They sold the company to South Africa's MTN Group for $5.5 billion in 2006.
The Mikati brothers now run M1 Group, a multibillion dollar holding company with interests in telecom, oil and gas and real estate among other things.
Last year, M1 bought a 13.95 percent stake in Bank Audi, Lebanon largest bank, for $450 million.
Israel radio has just reported that the United States says it would 'find it difficult' to support Lebanon if Hezbullah plays any key role in the government.
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
Citing a Kuwaiti newspaper report, Lebanese blog Ya Libnan reports that premier designate Najib Mikati is on the verge of quitting due to his inability to form a government. 
